


Of Royal Thorns and Glaring Suns

by Headphone_Love



Series: Oihina Week 2020 [1]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: (for now) - Freeform, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Banter, Enemies to Friends, Hinata Shouyou is a smartass, Hurt Hinata Shouyou, M/M, Merlin AU, Might turn into a series, Oblivious Hinata Shouyou, Oblivious Oikawa Tooru, Oikawa Tooru Being an Asshole, Oikawa Tooru Being an Idiot, Oikawa Tooru is a Mess, Shouyou is magical, Worried Oikawa Tooru
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-12
Updated: 2020-01-12
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:06:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22222267
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Headphone_Love/pseuds/Headphone_Love
Summary: Shouyou hated him.He hated the future king with every magical bone in his body.If Shouyou could, he’d put the future king in his place with a simple flick of his wrist and—ORThe Merlin AU that no one asked for because the thought of Oikawa being an arrogant yet soft prince and Hinata being a sassy yet protective warlock just hits different.
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Oikawa Tooru
Series: Oihina Week 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1599598
Comments: 19
Kudos: 169





	Of Royal Thorns and Glaring Suns

**Author's Note:**

> For Oihina Week 2020!  
> Day 1: Royalty. 
> 
> Oikawa being a prat?  
> Hinata being a disaster while hiding magic? 
> 
> Yes.  
> \---
> 
> Not Beta'd because we die like (wo)men.

Shouyou hated him. 

He hated the future king with every magical bone in his body. Ever since he’d arrived a mere few weeks back, said male had been a thorn in his side and was only finding ways to dig in deeper. His ‘uncle’ had warned him to keep a low profile and avoid getting into any trouble, but Shouyou had always had a mouth on him. So much so that he had nearly gotten locked up after meeting the future king on the street out of pure coincidence. While treating the wounds he’d gotten from his scat, the elder had scolded him to the point that Shouyou felt as if he were back home with his mother. 

Growing solemn, Shouyou nearly fell over at a particularly aggressive hit from the future king, sucking in a breath and feeling his entire body tense. 

“Higher.”

If Shouyou could, he’d put the future king in his place with a simple flick of his wrist and—

“So it seems true that all you’re good at is running if you can’t hold a simple target up,” Oikawa continued to berate, a few chuckles from the other knights only making Shouyou’s face burn from something other than exertion. 

“Sorry,” Shouyou said while plastering a smile on his lips. “You knights are strong and you, sire, have the biggest bones of all...must be eating well.”

Looking like Shouyou had slapped him, the prince straightened and gripped his sword so tightly that he could have indented his fingers into the metal. 

“I’m fighting fit!” 

Shouyou stood straight, lowering the target only for a moment and relishing in the way his arms agreed with the action. He let his eyes sweep over the prince slowly, allowing the gaze to linger. When he met the man’s eyes again to see the fire behind them, he smiled wide. 

Like the idiot Oikawa assumed he was. 

“Oh, yes, of course… _my lord_.” 

The other knights snickered to themselves—a bit louder than they had earlier—as Oikawa turned red in the face.

Barely recovering, Hinata could feel Oikawa going at the target in his hands with a much more brutal pace than before. This pace resulted in Shouyou on the ground half the time. The future king smirked in his face, asking if his own strength was hard to keep up with. Shouyou had shoved the target towards him without missing a beat and panted while shaking where he stood. 

“I’m sorry, I must have fallen asleep while waiting for the actual training to begin.”

Another clang of sword against wood to the point Shouyou was positive he heard it splinter. Perhaps his uncle had been right in his advice for Shouyou to, for once, shut his mouth. It wasn’t until Shouyou was about to collapse that a voice rang out, barely audible over the familiar clanking of the prince’s sword.

“Enough, Tooru.”

Shouyou turned along with Oikawa to see Iwaizumi staring at them both with a less than amused expression. Iwaizumi was one of the few that could get away with interrupting Oikawa when training. Even Shouyou dared not do such a thing at the risk of being forced to remain on the field longer than necessary. His uncle already had him collected herbs and reading books non stop when Shouyou wasn’t cleaning and caring for Oikawa. 

“Oh? And why should I stop when I still have so much energy left?” Oikawa questioned, whacking the target again without much warning. Shouyou winced and could feel the strain in his shoulders and arms. His legs were begging to rest, but he refused to fall again.

“Tooru—”

“I,” Oikawa began, slamming into the target with his weapon as Shouyou clenched his jaw. “Am. Allowed. To. Train. All. I,” he continued, each word followed by sword meeting wood. Shouyou was breathing hard, doing his best to follow. His eyes met Iwaizumi’s own pair for a split second before Oikawa hit the target again…. 

Or, Shouyou _thinks_ he did. 

The last thing he remembered was the bright sun hitting his face and a pain in his arm much stronger than any soreness he’d ever experienced. He could hear Oikawa and Iwaizumi calling for him, the last sight he saw was his own bloody right hand when it was pulled away from his soaked arm, then nothing. 

At least his body was allowed rest.

* * *

When Shouyou came to, he was lying with an awfully steel-faced Ukai standing over him. He shot up, immediately regretting it when the shock of his body had him groaning. His throat was awfully dry and he felt sticky with sweat, but other than that was more drowsy than anything. 

“Don’t be an idiot. You have to rest.”

“But the Prince—”

“Is currently reflecting after being chewed out by his knights for his actions,” his caretaker grumbled, muttering under his breath about something Shouyou couldn’t quite catch. 

“Did I sleep all day? How have I not heard Oikawa’s scolding yet for being lazy?”

The elder paused, turning to him and squinting as he often did whenever Shouyou asked something he found odd. “What do you remember?” 

Shouyou let out a breath of disbelief. “I remember a time where my questions weren’t followed by more questions…” he murmured as the elder cleared his throat. He pointed at Shouyou, head tilting slightly. 

“Come again?” 

Swallowing at the look, Shouyou cleared his throat. “I remember training with Oikawa and his knights. That’s all. I don’t recall training ending, however.”

Ukai sighed, returning to Shouyou’s side and sitting on the stool. Shouyou didn’t miss how his eyes slipped down to his arm, following the look with his own gaze. He frowned, squinting at the bandages wrapped around the majority of his left arm. Then, his eyes grew wide. 

“What _happened_?!” 

Cringing at the pitch of his own voice, Shouyou cleared his throat, running his good hand over the area and wincing at how tender it still felt. So it was recent, good to know. 

“What happened was Prince Oikawa shattered the target in two and damn near got you with it,” Ukai responded gruffly. “He ran here with you in his arms speaking nonsense about you bleeding out and begged me to help. Then he was swept away by the grumpy one…” 

“Sir Iwaizumi.”

“Not important,” Ukai insisted as he waved a hand. “He left you here for treatment. You’ve been unconscious since yesterday.”

Shouyou shut his eyes, recalling Oikawa and Iwaizumi bickering but truly unable to remember anything but sounds. Distant sounds, but sounds nonetheless. It was then that he processed the other's words and swallowed hard. He wasn’t sure whether the sweat slipping down his neck was from his rest or from the stress he felt building in his shoulders.

“I’ve been out for an entire day?”

Ignoring him, Ukai moved to grab a vile and hand it to him to drink. Shouyou did as requested, nearly gagging at the taste. 

“The chances of it scarring are high. Other than that, you’re lucky, little one.” 

Shouyou shivered at the aftertaste of whatever he’d been given. “Fun,” he started, flexing his hand slowly. It felt heavy but it was nothing a few days rest wouldn’t fix. “How am I able to move if it was as bad as you say?” he questioned curiously. “Especially after being asleep for as long as I was.”

He felt fine minus the soreness of the training and numbed out throbbing in his arm that would come and go. 

“Your magic, obviously. Without that, you’d have been speaking to the angels much sooner than your fate wished you to.”

Shouyou flexed his hand a final time before moving to stand, yelping as he hit the floor when his legs gave out from under him. Ukai simply watched, clicking his tongue. 

“Idiot. You are dead on your feet. You should recharge before galloping back to the Prince.”

“He’ll be expecting me,” Shouyou insisted, moving to stand more carefully this time. While he still didn’t like the future king, he still had an obligation to protect him…even if he was the one that nearly maimed him this time around. Besides, the prince had immediately gotten him some medical assistance from the only person in the kingdom that could actually help without knowing.

This meant he wasn’t as much of a dollophead as Shouyou assumed.

“Be back after assisting him to sleep. No heavy lifting, magical or otherwise,” Ukai said with a shake of his head, obviously not happy with the decision to return to the Prince so soon. Shouyou knew that Ukai didn’t understand him and to be honest Shouyou barely understood himself. He just knew it was the right choice, backed only by his gut.

“And if he gives you a hard time then return imme—”

Shouyou was out of the room before Ukai could change his mind. He swore he heard the other say something but was more focused on making sure Oikawa wouldn’t be alone for long. 

The man was clueless without Shouyou around and wouldn’t last another night without his assistance, after all. 

* * *

Shouyou walked into the prince’s room without so much as a knock, freezing at the doorway and looking around with wide eyes. There were clothes strewn everywhere, from the floor to the table and even hanging for dear life on the windowsill. A candle—not lit, thankfully—was knocked onto its side, the wax having dried against the table. 

“I’ve been gone for a mere day!” Shouyou gasped. The mess in the room looked as if a storm had begun while he was unconscious. It brought out the natural urge to clean, though he was distracted by the prince’s sudden movement.

Without much warning, Oikawa was before him in an instant. The prince raised his hands before letting them fall again, as if unsure of what to do with them all of a sudden. Shouyou didn’t miss how Oikawa’s gaze went to his arm, clearing his throat to gain the prince’s attention. 

“Seriously, _my lord_ , I get one little wound and you trash your bedroom?” 

With a click of his tongue, Shouyou began collecting various clothing items from the floor, placing them on the table to either clean or fold later. He could feel the other’s eyes on him the entire time but didn’t stop until the floor was somewhat visible again. 

“Sire, if you keep eyeing me like that I’ll assume you’ve lost what little of your mind you had left,” Shouyou teased. The prince didn't respond as usual, instead, staring at Shouyou with a gaze foreign to the manservant. It was unnerving, especially due to how wounded the other looked despite Shouyou being the injured one. 

“I’m sorry.” 

“Oh please, you’ve left larger messes for me to clean,” Shouyou said with a snort until he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Oikawa staring at him with a deep frown that nearly mirrored Ukai's own earlier. 

'Oh,' Shouyou thought, allowing his shoulders to fall. 'I've been caught.'

“Don’t be an idiot, Shouyou.”

Sighing heavily, Shouyou rolled his neck. “According to you that’s my default,” he said with a raised brow. “Now aside from my apparent lack of intelligence, what is going on in that head of yours? You being so...quiet is a bit strange even for you.”

“I was just thinking,” Oikawa said with a bit of defense, Shouyou tilting his head and frowning. 

“Oh. Now I’m _really_ concerned.”

A punch to the arm had him wincing as he gripped it and backed away, Oikawa cursing as he apologized profusely under his breath. Oikawa led him to sit down and even got him some water despite it being virtually useless. The gesture was kind enough, especially considering how the day had ended in Shouyou’s mind. It was at times like this that Shouyou remembered why he remained here despite all his lip Oikawa gave him. 

Why he wanted to protect the idiot prince—because under the arrogance was something worth protecting. 

“It’s fine,” Shouyou said once he had the pain at bay, a shaky breath following the words. “I’m—”

“You aren’t fine and neither were my actions.”

It wasn’t what Shouyou was expecting and a part of him debated whether he was still unconscious for a moment. 

“Hajime said you noticed the splintering of the target. Why didn’t you tell me?” 

Shouyou shifted, not used to having the prince stare at him so intensely. “Would you have taken my word for it or claimed it was an excuse for my laziness?”

After the words left his lips, he partially regretted it considering how Oikawa’s expression darkened. 

“You…are not wrong,” Oikawa admitted, standing and moving to pace the room. Shouyou watched him curiously, having never seen Oikawa pace in his time as his manservant. 

“Sire?” 

“You know not to address me as such here. There isn’t a need.”

“Okay then. Tooru,” Shouyou corrected, the name feeling odd but not uncomfortable on his tongue. “You cannot blame yourself for a mistake. Besides, Uk— _Uncle_ mentioned you were the one who brought me to him in time. You did what you could.”

“But—”

“And if I recall correctly, you were the one who told me no man is worth my tears or yours.”

Oikawa tensed. “I didn’t cry.”

“Could have fooled me with how you are wallowing. I practically see a cloud above you,” Shouyou said with a nod towards the other. He smirked at Oikawa’s fish impression, amused that one so smart could be rendered speechless so easily. When Oikawa stepped forward, Shouyou’s smirk melted into something softer.

The prince lost the fight in his eyes a moment after, letting out a breath of disbelief and shook his head. “You are a weird one, Shouyou.”

“So I’ve heard,” Shouyou mused, clapping his hands and standing. “Now, we must get you changed. You need your beauty sleep.”

“Are you implying I’m ugly?”

“I’m simply stating that there is always room for a bit of improvement,” Shouyou teased as Oikawa snorted at the reply.

Gathering the clothing, he stripped Oikawa's daywear off and tossed it to the table. He would need to bring it to the cleaning woman anyway considering he wouldn't be able to do much cleaning for however long his arm was injured. 

When it came time to dress the prince, Shouyou pretended not to notice how he would bend his knees to make the job easier on him. It was certainly a contrast to the nights when the prince did all he could in his power to make this specific difficult. He would stand so tall that Shouyou would get a chair to stand upon to tower over the other to make a point. Other times, Oikawa would force Shouyou to get a different pair of nightclothes, only to state that the original ones were better and to change him again.

Shouyou noticed a difference in himself as well; The urges to poke the other in the eye 'by accident' or pinch him while pulling the shirt down dissipated instantly. 

His body still protested despite this being the smoothest that the night routine had ever been, and by Oikawa's grim expression after he was done, Shouyou knew he must have noticed. 

Shouyou's panting after such a small task didn't help his case any.

“Go get some rest. You’re dismissed for the next two days until you are fully recovered.”

Not wanting to leave the room when the prince was obviously stuck in his own head, Shouyou huffed. “What is that I hear? Is that mercy? I didn’t think it was possible for you to exhibit such behavior.”

Oikawa's lips twitched, as he leaned in, getting into Shouyou’s face as he usual. Instead of a sneer or a smirk, there was a childish glint in his eyes. It had Shouyou's magic buzzing from beneath his skin and he had to take a step back to collect himself.

While he knew he wasn’t completely in control over his magic, it had never… _buzzed_. 

Oikawa followed him, however, grinning at the action. “So I should refrain?” 

Shouyou swallowed and huffed. “From being an ass? Impossible.” 

“ _Shouyou_.”

“ _Tooru_ ,” Shouyou responds, head tilting. “Or should I say, _my lord_?” 

“What you should say is ‘Goodnight’,” Oikawa said, chuckling and shaking his head. “Or else I’ll have your uncle come and escort you out.”

Raising his hands in surrender, Shouyou did a mock bow. “No need, I’ll be going. Make sure to sleep well. I’ll be waking you up early once I return.”

“I expect it. Don’t be late.”

Shouyou grinned and walked to the door, looking over his shoulder. “Am I ever?”

“Go,” Oikawa warned, pointing a finger as Shouyou pouted. 

He exited the room without another word, hand on the door as he offered a final look to the future king before shutting it quietly. His walk back to his and Ukai’s quarters was uneventful minus the way his heart began to beat with a new fervor. Once he was in the safety of their chambers, he placed a hand against his chest.

“Exertion,” Shouyou decided despite the lack of any other symptoms to back his claim. When his cheeks grew red from the truth threatening to spill to the surface, he quickly moved to his room to hide beneath his sheets. 

He ignored the return of the buzzing beneath his skin, unaware of how some of the items in the room began to lift into the air.


End file.
